Impressions in Marketing Explained
Learn what impressions mean in marketing and digital advertising. Understand how impressions work, why they matter, and how to use them to improve campaign performance.
glossary
1
min read
In marketing, an impression refers to a single instance when an ad is delivered and has the potential to be seen by a person. It’s a measure of visibility, not interaction—so every time your ad appears on a user’s screen (whether or not they engage with it), that’s one impression.
Think of it like placing a billboard along a highway. Each car that drives by represents an impression, regardless of whether the driver looks up.
Impressions Meaning in Digital Marketing
In digital advertising, impressions are foundational to tracking reach and performance across programmatic campaigns. Whether you’re running display, CTV, or audio ads, impressions tell you how many times your ad was served. They’re especially relevant in CPM (cost-per-mille) models, where you pay per 1,000 impressions.
It’s important to note:
Impressions ≠ Engagement. Just because someone could see the ad doesn’t mean they clicked it.
Impressions ≠ Reach. One user seeing your ad five times counts as five impressions, but only one in terms of reach.
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